Day 93 - Crazy crazy

First half of Kenpo, followed by Kenpo Cardio Plus from P90X+. Whew! I was throwing punches a lot faster than Tony and his friends were - and it showed, because I was in a lather and panting like crazy by the time it was over. I could hardly throw any punches toward the end, I was so tired. But, now that it's over, I feel great, as usual!

Tomorrow is New Years Eve. We are going to my sister and brother-in-law's place for their NYE party. I can't wait! Tomorrow also happens to be a rest day, but we're going to do something to help cancel out the drinks and munchies. Not sure what, maybe an Insanity workout? (Unlikely, since I hate them. We'll see.)

In any event, we have FOUR DAYS of P90X left. I'm still thrown off course from Christmas, and I wish we had started a week earlier. But we're back on track now and it's starting to wind down for us. Hard to believe. I get to tell people now that I finished P90X! Crazy crazy :)

Day 92 - I'm officially a Yogi

I. Love. Yoga.

I really can't stress that enough. I love it. I love the stretching, the holding, the pain and the willpower it takes to get through that pain. The shaking muscles, the huge increase in flexibility from start to finish. Love, love, love! I can't wait to start looking into yoga classes in town. I have no idea what it'd be like to do yoga with a room full of other people. Plus, I'm pretty stoked on learning new poses. P90X has turned me into a yogi! This is good since, according to Women's Health, yoga practitioners tend to eat mindfully, eating when hungry and stopping when full - they think it's because yoga teaches calmness in the face of discomfort, which might make it easier to cave in to cravings.

Speaking of Women's Health, their January issue has a few delicious looking soup recipes. I made one tonight, Savoury Moroccan, which has chicken stock, diced tomatoes, zucchini, chickpeas, artichoke hearts, couscous, parsley, raisins, scallions and spices. YUM! I added chicken myself, boiling it and cutting it into little pieces. The end result? To die for. We had it with a delicious Blue Menu whole-wheat baguette. WH says to make sure that whole wheat is the first ingredient (check), it has no trans fats (check), and it has at least 3 grams of fibre per serving (check!). This recipe definitely made the books. I can't wait to try the other four recipes - and I intend to!

This isn't my final result - I stole it from WH!

And a gratuitous photo of me in Warrior Two.

Day 91 - Back to the grind

And by grind, I mean workouts that feel amazing after many days of overeating and underexercising.

Day 1 of our last week was Core Synergistics, and it was great. Definitely a little harder, given the 5-day lapse in workouts, but it felt really great to get moving again. I can't believe the change in my attitude, even from half a year ago. I used to go weeks without working out. Now I don't think I could go a couple days without missing the burn.

Christmas was fantastic, wonderful, and relaxing, everything a good Christmas should be. Chris and I had a great time traveling around between families, get-togethers, dinners and present openings. It sure is nice to be home, though. Sometimes you're on the go for so long, you don't realize it until you stop. That happened to me, and only today did I realize how busy we were over the holidays. So nice to lay around our own home and really relax together.

So, I guess this blog will end up being 97 days instead of 90. But that's alright. Tony will just have to rename it P97X. ;)

DAY 90!

...Not as joyous and momentous as I was expecting. I blame Christmas.

Bring on the last week of P90X - again!

Day 88 & 89 - It's official

Christmas ruined P90X!

Real bacon and whole eggs for breakfast? Don't think that's in the meal plan! What a truly awful time to be finishing this program. But, there's hope - Chris said that, when he gets home, he plans on doing the last week over again. Or rather, doing it properly. I'm going to join him. I don't want these last few days to ruin the momentum of P90X, so I guess I'll have more than 90 posts when I'm all done! I'll also be joining Chris for some Insanity workouts to get some cardio and get my heart going.

It's amazing how crappy I've felt at the end of the day, with not working out and eating like this. I'm not used to it, my body isn't used to it, and my muscles feel like they're wasting away! I miss working out! Hahah I never thought I'd say that, but it's true. I miss it!

We're heading back home today, then back to Mom's tomorrow, and back home the next day. So that day, which would be the 28th, we'll restart the last week. I can't let these 90 days end like this!

Day 87 - Christmas Eve!

Happy Christmas Eve day, everyone! We spent the day with the family again, and I showed Chris around town (not that there's much to see!). Tonight we're going to my step-dad's sisters house for dinner, which is a big tradition in their family. Lots of family to see!

As far as working out goes, well... No workout has happened yet. But, this morning I found out my Mom has a yoga mat, and I have a Women's Health yoga app on my iPhone. I'm thinking I'll attempt some yoga, at least 20 minutes, before bed tonight. Will keep you posted.

I feel like such a mega-slacker. Oh, gotta go, the sugar cookies are calling... ;)

Day 86 - Christmas begins

We spent the day preparing for, and then traveling to, my Mom's place for Christmas. It's so nice to be home with her and my step-dad. My grandfather is here too. So great! We decorated the tree last night and had the fire going while snow fell slowly outside. Doesn't get much more perfect than that! But - no working out happened. It's hard to say "Sorry but I have to leave this nice get-together to go work out". I thought that it would be a breeze wrapping up P90X around Christmastime, but it's not so. However, it does make me feel better to know that we're starting it again in January, so all of my hard work won't go to waste.

And oh, the food and treats...

Day 85 - Curse Half Moon!

We have another fun-filled day today, so our workouts had to be squeezed in in the morning. Legs and Back was scheduled, but I have a really hard time doing strength or cardio workouts in the morning. So, I did Fountain of Youth. It felt great to do it in the morning first of all, and secondly, I did it alone since Chris did Legs & Back, so I found I could concentrate more and I definitely got a better workout from it. I was dripping sweat onto the yoga mat! I also love the hamstring stretches. They feel incredible. I'm falling more and more in love with yoga every time I do it. Except...

Half Moon!! I hate the balance poses! I don't know why, I love Tree pose, but for some reason I have a really hard time balancing in the Half Moon poses. I tumble and stumble and fall all over the place. It's a little ridiculous. But I keep trying! I want to join a yoga class, I think, so I want to try to master these poses before I do that.

Anyhoo, we're on our way out the door to my friends' place. Love Christmas and the get-togethers it brings!

Damn you Half Moon!

Day 84 - Social butterfly

I had a friend over tonight for four hours of talking and catching up. It was so great. It meant I missed my workout, but if there's ever a reason, catching up with friends is it.

Legs and Back has been postponed until tomorrow. Sorry, Tony!

Day 83 - Pouring on the Pounds

Today, I did absolutely nothing. For the first time in months, I didn't leave the house, I had no homework, chores or errands to do, and I didn't even get dressed. And I loved it! It was so great to have a day to do nothing. Mind you, one day is about all I could handle. If I didn't have to leave the house tomorrow, I still would. I'd find something to do. I can't sit around for too long, I get shack whacky.

Chris and I did our Kenpo workout tonight, and we learned why Tony didn't have Kenpo following Back & Biceps. Both of us were grunting and groaning because our biceps were so sore (that may be a slight exaggeration). We did the usual mix, the first half of Kenpo X and the first half (or so) of Kenpo Cardio +. Followed by Ab Ripper. Oh, Ab Ripper. I thought I could master you in 90 days... I thought wrong. I only have one more Ab Ripper workout!!! This means that I either have to a) master it in one go, or b) accept the fact that I won't master it this time around. I'm leaning toward b.

So, my step-mother works for the New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene. She (and many others) developed this ad campaign describing the negative effects that soda has on peoples' health. They have a website, a Facebook group, a YouTube video and mass transit posters, and they're causing a stir in New York, in the States and around the world. I highly recommend checking it out (especially the YouTube video!) and passing it along to friends.

Day 82 - Fountain of Youth

Exciting news. Fountain of Youth is awesome!!! It's a little over 40 minutes, and has a lot less jibber jabber than the P90X Yoga. The poses are a lot more fluent and cohesive, and you never hold upward dog for more than 5 seconds (versus P90X Yoga where it's always at least 10). It felt more like a workout than the other Yoga. Needless to say, we're both very happy with it and I highly recommend it if Yoga is too long for you. It's $19.95 and you can get it here.

We did yoga in the morning, and Back & Biceps in the evening. It was quite late when we finished, so we postponed Ab Ripper to today. Usually in Back & Biceps I use 10 lb weights, but this time, since it was our second last resistance workouts, I upped it to 15 lb. Obviously my reps dropped a bit, but it felt great to use a heavier weight. So that's it - no more Back & Biceps workouts!

Our last resistance workout is on Monday, and it's Legs & Back. Then it's our last recovery week, and then we're done!

Day 81 - Total slackers

Today, we slacked. Big time. Not only did we skip our workout (bad!) we also had some not-so-good snacks this evening. Corn chips (reduced salt) and salsa, shrimp, meatloaf, squares.. Yeah. I'm definitely losing the solid discipline I had when I first started out. Where did it go?!

But, tomorrow's a big day. Yoga (Fountain of Youth) in the morning, and Back & Biceps and Ab Ripper (which was actually tonights workout) tomorrow night. I won't feel so bad once we're caught up.

Day 80 - Christmas is coming..

With Christmas a mere 8 days away, treats and temptations are extra-hard to resist. A friend of mine brought by some homemade Bits & Bites and peppermint-chocolate cookies. My mom is in a baking frenzy at her house, having completed three full days of cooking and baking. And it is all sooo tempting! Starting P90X, Chris and I gave ourselves three "eating occasions": Thanksgiving, his birthday, and Christmas. For our Christmas dinner I'm not going to worry, but it's the appetizers and snacks and treats leading up to Christmas that I'm worried about! I'm really proud of myself for passing up snacks and treats for the last 80 days, and I know I won't let that all go to hell by pigging out every day around Christmastime. But still, something inside is telling me that something's gotta give.

I think the best thing is going to be moderation. It's unfortunate, but Christmas celebrations are a lot about eating, and the last thing I want is to a) come off as rude or b) feel like I missed out on the celebrating. So here's my plan: I'll have some Christmas treats, but in moderation. Far, far, far less than I would normally have. I figure that this way, I can relax more and enjoy my vacation, and at the same time, not doom my health and body and my hard-earned abs. (Plus, we're doing another round of P90X after Christmas - back on the wagon I go!)

We made tonight our rest day. Tomorrow will be Back & Biceps and Ab Ripper, followed by Yoga the next day (which will be the NEW Fountain of Youth disc that we received!). So, off I go to rest! :)

Seriously. How could you pass that up??

Day 79 - New protein!

Today's workout was simple, plain ol' Cardio X. I hardly broke a sweat during the yoga and kenpo exercises, I was thinking I was doing great! Then came the plyo section.. I started sweating like hell. But! I enjoyed every single exercise this time around (whereas, in the past, there's always been one that I hated). It's a great workout because it's nice and short - 45 minutes - and it covers everything, from yoga to core syn.

Last night we had a catastrophic incident. We ran out of PROTEIN!!! Okay, it wasn't that bad. But there was only enough for one shake, so we split it, each had half, and shared a protein bar. We were using this professional kind called , but it was a wee bit on the pricey side. So Chris went out this afternoon to WalMart and got a new kind, . I was skeptical because my sister uses protein from WalMart in a vanilla flavour, and when I tried hers, I nearly choked, it was so sweet. But Chris got chocolate (the last kind was chocolate fudge), so I was cautiously optimistic. I had some after my Cardio workout today, and it was tasty! I have to say, I'm very impressed, WalMart. Very impressed.

 

Old protein vs. new protein

Day 78 - Stuffed peppers mmmmm

Our last Chest, Shoulders and Triceps exercise was today! Chris says it's his favourite, and it's definitely one of mine. I'm sad that we won't do it again! Ab Ripper was particularly awesome, with both myself and Chris doing ALL of Fifer Scissors with no breaks! That exercise is brutal, and we finally conquered it! Ab Ripper is slowly, slowly getting easier. Yippee!

A few days ago we found a delicious looking recipe in one of my Women's Health magazines for stuffed red peppers. Chris was determined to make them, so he did! And they were delicious! Red peppers stuffed with lean ground turkey, rice, raisins, green olives and garlic. YUM!!

Mmmmm so tasty!

Day 77 - Kenpo +

Since it was a Kenpo day, Chris and I started out doing the regular Kenpo disc. We stopped once the kick sequences were over, and we switched to Kenpo + from the P90X+ workouts. It's a lot more involved, and a lot more fun. My only qualm is that Tony doesn't really explain the moves, he just kind of.. starts doing them. But I got the hang of it! We only do Kenpo two more times (eeep!) so I'll definitely be doing the Kenpo + workout for those!

Last night for supper I made a fierce pork tenderloin. Chris was MMMM-ing the entire time, so it got his approval, too! I browned the tenderloin in a pan for a few minutes first, then I put it on tin foil and twisted up each corner of the foil so it made a bowl shape. Then I poured in a mixture of chicken broth (1/2c), ketchup (2tbsp), brown sugar (2tbsp), Worcestershire sauce (1tsp), and 4 cloves of garlic. Then I folded over the edge to seal it, put it on a cookie sheet and baked it at 350 for about an hour and a half. And my god. The tenderloin was so tender, it was stringy and falling apart! Delicious! I'll be making that recipe again, for sure.

Next up: Chest, Shoulders & Triceps!

Day 76 - The countdown begins

T-minus 14 days! Two weeks! Eeeek!

We just finished up Legs & Back and Ab Ripper. I feel like we do that workout all the damn time! Good thing I like it. I had a hard time this time around, because for some reason I was really dizzy after each exercise. Like the kind of dizzy from standing up too fast. It usually passed within 10 seconds or so, so I kept going. Odd though. Chris said it could be from lack of water, which is true, but I didn't have any less water than I do on most days. Hmm.

I'm changing my diet tomorrow, shifting back to Phase Two. More protein, less carbs. I miss my protein! Namely, chicken bacon. Tony says that once you're in Phase Three, you can either stay in the Phase Three nutrition phase or go back to Phase Two, whichever works best for you. If the dizziness is from a lack of enough food, hopefully this nutrition shift will help with that.

On a totally different note, my abs are coming along nicely.. Still have a little ways to go to get to where I want to be: like her!

I will look like this!

Day 75 - Christmas shopping

Yesterdays workout lost to Christmas shopping and gift wrapping. I hate skipping workouts, but on the other hand, I'm done shopping and everything is wrapped, so I still feel like I accomplished something. Since yesterday was our rest day, we're going to do yesterdays workout (Legs and Back) today, and today's workout (Kenpo) tomorrow.

While at the mall, Chris and I got chicken wraps for supper. One of our favourite pastimes is to people-watch, and mall food courts are prime people-watching areas. I love watching people order from Taco Bell when they really shouldn't be ordering from Taco Bell, or watching them shove a whole tray of donair meat down their throat before I finish my wrap. People are so entertaining and they don't even know it. :)

Spotted this at the Chinese food place, and I snuck in line to get a photo.

Yes, that's right. Deep fried cheesecake. Sigh..

Day 74 - 82% done!

Tonight was Yoga X, and I felt great doing it throughout the whole workout! The only part I struggle with now is that damn Warrior 3 sequence. I can't - for the life of me - balance during those poses! Maybe someday I'll get them..

Before Yoga though, we went for supper at Chris's grandparents. It was his Nanny's birthday today, so we went and spent time with the fam jam. We had haddock (the best I've ever had, hands down), carrots, broccoli, and potatoes, followed by a (little) piece of cake and ice cream. It was a great time!

As I'm sure I've said before, I have a subscription to Women's Health magazine. I saw this photo online today, about Men's Health magazine, and I was embarassed for them. Sooo humiliating.. Bet they thought no one would notice!!

D'oh!

Day 73 - Plyo, plyo, plyo

Oh, how I've missed Plyo! I love it (I know I say that about every workout)! It's definitely in my top 5 favourite workouts. During the Hot Foot exercise, I always used to switch feet every 15 seconds instead of every 30 like Tony does. My calf and foot hurt too much, and I couldn't stand it. But today I managed to do the whole 30 seconds per foot, both times! I was so excited! Nothing else has changed - I still have to take mini-breaks near the end of most workouts - but I'm still feeling great, and I'm still impressed that I can do both 1-minute sessions of the Swing Kicks. Love those!

A few days ago during Legs and Back, Chris took a video of me doing Lawnmowers.. Check it out, I look like such a gym buff!

During my workout, Chris was busy in the kitchen.. When I came out, I was served this: chicken breast with honey chili sauce on stir-fried veggies with walnuts sprinkled on top. Heaven!!!

Mmmmmm tastyyy

Day 72 - Finals...

Too much to do tonight. Writing my last final exam tomorrow afternoon. Tonight's plyo has been shifted to tomorrow. See you then!

Day 71 - Dive bombers

I have a confession: I love dive bomber push-ups. Sure, I do the more easy 'modified' version, but they're still awesome. I did 15 my first set and 11 my second set (in contrast, I did 13 then 5 diamond push-ups). I actually enjoy the dive bombers!

We had a friend over for supper last night, and she loved the Island Pork Tenderloin that Chris made. We got a little cherry cheesecake as a treat, and we each had a little piece. Now we have five pieces of cheesecake in the freezer. I'm thinking we might have to give that away so it won't get eaten! Maybe I'll take a few pieces into school. Everyone loves cheesecake!

Hard to believe we're so far into the program. I was looking at our schedule yesterday. We X off every day that's gone by, and they're almost all marked off... Getting there!

Next up: plyometrics!

Day 70 - !!!!

Today is a rest day, so not much to post. Besides it's DAY 70 and we only have 20 more days left!!!

Day 69 - Losing motivation

Lately, I've had a hard time finding the energy and motivation to do these workouts. Today, I just didn't.

When I'm stressed from school, I find working out to be a great outlet. I sweat and I burn my negative energy off by exercising, and I come out of it feeling more focused and more able to tackle everything on my to-do list. However, with family, friend or boyfriend stress, it's a different story. My post from a few days ago still rings true, and that issue is still going on. At first I pushed through it and found strength to work out, but I couldn't do that tonight. I'm mentally, emotionally and spiritually exhausted from this fight. Chris talked with me earlier about doing Kenpo together, and I confessed that I didn't have it in me. We had a long talk that ended with me crying, and deciding to forgo the workout and prepare lunches for tomorrow instead. It's funny. School stress vs. life stress.

I'm still a wreck. I had to stop typing halfway through that paragraph to shed some more tears. Now, not only am I tired from the fighting, I'm frustrated that I let it get to me. I was annoyed at myself for not being able to suck it up and get it over with. I felt like a failure. Thank goodness for Chris. He was very reassuring and supportive which was exactly what I needed. But I still have this nagging feeling of defeat, of failure.

After all of this, in the back of my mind, I promised myself that I would do my best for the next 20 days. I really am proud of how much I've achieved and what I've learned, and I know in my heart that I won't let that go to waste. Still, it's hard when I've been rocked so hard. Tomorrow's a new day, though, and we'll see what it brings.

Day 68 - 22 more days!

Chris just had this epiphany - 22 more days of P90X!!

I think, when we're finished, I'm going to have some sort of crisis. I won't know what to do with myself! We had planned to start it over in preparation for our trip to the Dominican in March, so that's an option.. Hmm. At least we have 22 days to decide.

And we'll be taking a few days off for Christmas. ;)

So we just finished legs and back, and even though it hurts like hell, it remains one of my top 3 favourite workouts. Then we did Ab Ripper, which I've come to hate. Even though I've been doing it for 68 days now (not consecutively, but still), I still struggle with every single exercise and I can only finish about two of them without stopping for a mini break. That's kind of frustrating. Still, I keep trying, and that's all I can do.

I got a message today from a girl I went to high school with. I closed it before I had a chance to save it (dammit!), but she basically said that she reads my blog and that, because of me, she and her boyfriend started doing Power 90. She said they want to do P90X but thought they'd start with Power 90 and see how things went. Then she congratulated me on my progress and called me an inspiration! I was so happy. I really appreciate messages like that. I'm doing this program for ME, but if I can motivate and inspire people along the way, it makes my experience that much better. So, thank you for that message!

And now, I have to go.. Pork tenderloin is calling :)

Day 67 - Feeling lazy

I'm skipping my workout tonight. I have no excuse really. I was home all day, and waiting for Chris so we could do Yoga together. Then, we went shopping and when we got home it was 9:00 and I was too pooped to think about Yoga. Kudos to Christopher though, who's doing it as I type this.

So, since I have nothing to write about, I'll post this video. Chris found it somewhere online, and it just goes to show how fun can motivate people to exercise. Great video!

Check it out here!

Day 66 - Back and Biceps!

So, I did Back & Biceps for the first time! I loved it, of course, but I love all weight training exercises. My only issue with this workout is the stupid woman they have in the group - she's so annoying! "BRING THE PAIN, bring it!" "I'm upping my weight, Tony!" "What do you think, Tony?" Uggghhhh she couldn't suck up to him any more even if she tried. She was so irritating!

Anyway, the workout itself was great. I did the pull-ups using a chair, which I think I like better than negative pull-ups. Maybe because they're easier! Also, I love bicep exercises. I've said it before, but I love the workouts that make me feel like a huge manly gym-buff Hulk-type. Plus, I can lift heavier weights than I ever thought I could!

Yoga is next on the docket.. I love it when it's over, but I hate it at the time. It's so long! Oh, and speaking of that, Chris and I ordered Fountain of Youth, a 45-minute fast-yoga workout from Tony's One-On-One series. We figured the cost was worth having a shorter yoga workout, and it had been suggested on the P90X message boards. So whenever we get it and try it out, I'll keep you posted!

Day 65 - Insanity!

So for the past few weeks, Chris has been doing Insanity workouts along with his P90X workouts. So tonight I decided that I would try the Insanity cardio workout in lieu of Tony's Cardio workout. The Cardio workout in P90X isn't really cardio as such, but more like an all-encompassing summary workout.. if you know what I mean.

Anyway, Insanity is a cardio-centred program that is, literally, insane. From their website: Your personal trainer Shaun T will push you past your limits with 10 workout discs packed with plyometric drills on top of nonstop intervals of strength, power, resistance, and ab and core training moves. No equipment or weights needed. Just the will to get the hardest body you've ever had. So, long story short, it’s Shaun T yelling at you and a group of other victims in some gymnasium somewhere.

I really believe Insanity is a great program. But, hating cardio as I do, it was hard for me to really get into it because my mind wasn’t in the right place. I find that happens with any type of cardio workout though, so it’s not any different than the norm. Still, it’s a fantastic replacement for Cardio X, which (don’t tell Tony) isn’t that great.

Exciting news – tomorrow I’m doing the Back & Biceps workout which I’ve never ever done! I’m excited to see a new workout after 65 days doing this program. A change of pace is always welcome!

P.S. After my workout, for the hell of it, I wanted to do some sit-ups... and ended up doing 80 in a row! The most I've ever done! Actual sit-ups too, none of those sissy crunches! ;) I'm pretty happy about that!

Get fit or get out!

Day 64 - CST, baby!

Chest, Shoulders & Triceps has got to be one of my favourite workouts. I love how many pushups I can do. I just tried to do as many as possible and I got 14; mind you, that's after this CST workout. On weigh-in day I did 20 pushups. I can't wait until I can do more!

I love the tricep workouts too, and the weird burn I get from them. No other way to explain it but weird! I think I love this workout because I feel like a total hulk grunting and grimacing and watching my muscles swell. It sounds weird, but I love feeling like a man in this respect!

Our diet changed a few days ago, and it's been... meh. The nutrition guide advises that you can either stay in Phase Three diet or go back to Phase Two, whichever feels best. I definitely liked Phase Two better, but I'm sticking it out because I want to complete this program as it was designed.

On another note, I subscribe to Women's Health magazine and I often check their website for advice and stories. They have these 12 powerfoods that are good ab foods, but you have to submit your email in order to access it. Lame! So I'm posting it for all to see. It's not rocket science, but it's still pretty neat.

Click for full size!

Day 63 - Sighhh

Unfortunately, due to inevitable, anticipated familial conflict, I skipped my Kenpo workout tonight. Stress usually motivates me to do better. This time it sucked out my life force and I retreated to the couch.

Tomorrow is Chest, Shoulders & Triceps and Ab Ripper. Tomorrow will be a better day.

Day 62 - I touched the floor!

When I started this program 62 days ago, I couldn't do a sitting toe-touch. Now I can reach 4" past my toes. When I started, I could hardly bend past 90 degrees at the waist. Now, just tonight, I finally did it - I touched the ground while standing with straight knees. I can't believe that I can actually touch the floor. That my hamstrings actually allowed it! I'm not trying to lost weight, nor am I trying to bulk up, but I'm definitely aiming to become more flexible.. And I've come a long way. And I have the photo to prove it!

That's me! Touching the floor!!

Day 61 - A day late

My bad. I forgot to post again last night. See, when anything happens outside of the norm (last night we went to a show at my school), I completely forget about posting.

Yesterday I did Legs and Back, and I'm getting better at this whole negative pull-ups thing. I have no problem with lunges anymore, which I guess is indicative that my legs are getting stronger! Yay! I love love love the calf workouts, they're definitely my favourite. When I work them really hard and they start to burn, it makes me feel like I have to pee! Hahaha it's the weirdest thing.

I ordered Christopher's Christmas present yesterday: a heart rate monitor! He already knows about it, so I didn't just ruin the surprise. He had to pick it out so I knew he was getting the one he wanted. He's very excited, and I am too because it'll be great to see how many calories we're burning during a hard cardio workout!

That's all for me - I'll be back tonight! :)

Day 60 - A quick entry

Just wanted to say...

I'm 2/3 done! Day 60! 66% finished! 
Wahoooo!!

Day 59 - Power Blocks!

Today was a good workout day, a not-so-good diet day. I went to a lunchtime conference where there was pizza and salad being served. I had a piece of BBQ chicken pizza (thinking that this was better for me than pepperoni or works) and a giant salad, fruit and water. Not so bad I guess, but this is the first time in over 59 days that I've had a piece of pizza! That's wild. Before this, Chris and I would order or make a pizza at least once a week!

As far as the workout goes, I did Shoulders & Arms. I like this workout because once it's over, there's so much blood flow to my arms and shoulders that I look HUGE! I don't want to ever look that muscle-y, but it's fun to see how much bigger my arms get when I work them out.

It's hard to believe I'm in Phase 3! I literally don't know what I'm going to do with myself when I'm done with P90X. Obviously I won't stop working out, but it's hard to say how often I will (likely 3-4x a week) or what I'll be doing (Yoga? Dance? Insanity?). I'm just enjoying this program and I'm making the most of it while it lasts. I'm even considering doing it over again, just minus the super-strict diet. Time will tell..

Oh yeah, and Chris got some Power Blocks! He found a used set on Kijiji (which is good because they're very expensive). Power Blocks are dumbbells with adjustable weights, so you can have a set of 5, 10, 15, 20, 25, 30, 35, 40, 45 and 50 lb weights with only one pair of dumbbells. They're huge space savers, which is great in a tiny little apartment like ours. Chris is loving them! I'll stick with my 5, 8 and 10 lb sets, thanks. :)

The Power Blocks!

Day 58 - "Get a life"

There is a thread on the P90X message boards on Facebook called Spousal Sabotage. In it, different people discuss their experiences with their spouses and families not being supportive during their P90X journey. I encountered this myself today. Someone very close to me is having a hard time accepting the fact that I am doing and enjoying P90X.

I think that most people see intense exercise and strict diet in a negative light, or as a bad thing. Seldom do people see it as a positive, and if they do, they're usually supporting you to be a good friend and not because they believe in the program. I have many friends at school who think I'm crazy for passing up cookies and snacks, but they know now what it is I'm doing, why I'm doing it, and how much it means to me, so I'm not even offered treats and snacks anymore. It's become sort of a joke now for them to pass the snacks right by me. But I love this kind of support, the "we think you're crazy but if you're happy, we're happy" support.

This other person is not supportive. She is neither encouraging nor motivating. And she's certainly not understanding. She can't fathom why I'm doing such a long and brutal exercise program. When I post about it, she gets annoyed, even if I'm proclaiming my progress. She says I should "get a life" and stop being "so obsessed". She even said that no one reads my posts (you guys are a testament to that untruth, so feel free to leave your comments!). I was not overweight when I started P90X. I was not unhealthy, out of shape nor self-conscious. Because of this, it completely boggles this person's mind that I would do P90X. She has that classic attitude of 'if you're thin, why exercise?'. She's called me skinny, which I hate. It seems as though the happier I become, with my health, body and life in general, the more unhappy she becomes. And I do not understand.

So, this post is partly to rant and partly to raise awareness. If you're calling someone a "loser" and then telling them it was "just a joke" and to not take it so hard, you need to wake up. You need to see that you're hurting that person and, if they're not strong enough, you WILL bring them down. If any good came out of this, it's that I'm even more motivated now to kick ass and keep bringing it. She will not slow my progress. She will not bring me down. She will not win.

Day 57 - Photo and measurement day!

Drumroll please.. The biggest increases this time around are in push-ups (20!!) and flexibility. From Day 0 to today, I've gained 9" of flexibility! Unbelievable! 


Weight
Day 0: 124 lb
Day 30: 123 lb
Day 60: 123 lb

Chest
Day 0: 32"
Day 30: 31"
Day 60: 32"

Waist
Day 0: 27"
Day 30: 27"
Day 60: 26"

Hips
Day 0: 34"
Day 30: 33.5"
Day 60: 34"

Right thigh
Day 0: 19"
Day 30: 19"
Day 60: 19"

Left thigh
Day 0: 18"
Day 30: 19"
Day 60: 19"

Right arm
Day 0: 10.5"
Day 30: 10.5"
Day 60: 10.75"

Left arm
Day 0: 11"
Day 30: 10.5"
Day 60: 10.5"

Pushups
Day 0: 7
Day 30: 11
Day 60: 20

Wide-grip pull-ups
Day 0: 1/2
Day 30: 3/4
Day 60:

Toe touch
Day 0: -5" (5" away from touching toes)
Day 30: +2" (2" past toes)
Day 60: +4" (4" past toes)

No weight loss, but a huge change in body composition!

Day 56 - Slacker!

I don't know what's wrong with me - I post here every night for 53 nights and then forget a bunch in a row?? Not cool, Heather! Not that there's anything pivotal to report, just that yesterday was a rest day, and we're doing photos and measurements today instead of last night. I'll post tonight with the results! :)

Also, our diets change today - PHASE THREE! I now get two protein, three carb, two fruit, two vegetable, one fat, one dairy one bar, one snack. Hope I don't crash in the middle of the day from lack of protein!

Day 55 - Meatballs

Well, so much for Yoga. Chris felt like a more intense workout than Yoga tonight, and after my half-assed Core Syn workout last night,  I agreed. We did Core, because anything more intensely cardio would have caused major stitches since we only ate 15 minutes before working out. I kicked ass though, I'm slowly gaining better form in the Bow to Boat exercise, and for the first time I did the whole minute of Towel Hopping! And, I did 14 Stacked Foot/Staggered Hand Push-ups NOT on my knees! Hooray!!

For supper tonight (and hence the post title) we made turkey meatballs. Originally we intended to buy ground turkey and make them from scratch, but Sobeys sucks and they didn't have any ground turkey. So we bought a blue menu-type frozen kind, Extra Lean Ground Turkey Meatballs. 2.5 g of fat per 4 meatballs, and 10 g of protein.. Not too shabby! Chris made a tasty tomato sauce for them, and we ate them with mashed sweet potatoes and peas and carrots. The best part: we made the whole box, so we have lunch for tomorrow, plus one more leftover meal. Love it!

I'm going to go have some fro yo.. Tomorrow is picture and measurement day! :)

(They got a 9/9 rating on the Compliments website!)

Day 54 - Forgot to post!

Oops. I went out last night for a friend's birthday, then came home and crashed. Totally forgot to post. I did a shortened Core Syn workout last night (due to time constraints). I felt bad not doing the whole thing but I did my best for the time I had. Tonight is Yoga!

In preparation for going out last night, my friend and I looked up calories in drinks. She had heard of someone drinking flavoured vodka and soda water, and she said it was really low-cal.. and it was! Only 69 calories in 1 oz of the vodka, and none in the soda water. We both ordered these at the bar, and they were tasty! I really hate sugary drinks, and this tasted like club soda with a hint of raspberry. We had three of them, and I didn't feel  guilty at all since it was so low-calorie and since I was staying hydrated with the soda water. I think I've found "my drink"!

Day 53 - Rest day (AKA: Shopping!)

I spent the day at the malls with my buddies, looking for a dress for an upcoming occasion. Not for me, for her. With no luck. :( But it was still fun and a great way to escape the schoolwork for a little while!

Today was a rest day, and the diet was pretty boring: chicken bacon and egg whites for breakfast, Subway for lunch, tofu sausage and salad for supper. But, speaking of diet, I found a great website listing the 20 worst drinks in America. It states that "The average person consumes an extra 600 calories a day between Thanksgiving and New Year's, which translates into an extra six pounds of belly fat heading into 2010." These drinks don't help! Check it out, then commit to water and tea. You don't need the other garbage! Eat This, Not That!

#1 worst drink: The Cold Stone Creamery PB&C Shake

2,010 calories

131 g fat (!!!!!) (68 g saturated)

153 g sugars

Day 52 - Run run run

Since I am in my rest week, today was supposed to be a Kenpo day. However, Chris got Insanity the other day and he's been dappling in that, so he decided he wanted to do one of those workouts instead, and I wanted to join him. But, before working out, I had supper (pork and veggies) so I started getting a major stitch in my side. I didn't want to ruin Chris's workout, but I also didn't want to do nothing, so I went for a run. I ran a lot before starting P90X, and I've never really enjoyed it. I found it really hard, frustrating and only rewarding when it was actually over with. My run tonight was the same, only my body handled it much better. I didn't time myself (I wish I had), but I ran 3.7km with one one-minute walking break. My breathing was better, my gait was stronger, my stride was longer and everything just seemed to flow. There was no fighting with my body to keep going, I just went. So, P90X has definitely helped my running.

Chris and I just watched The Making of P90X and it was pretty great. Tony is so funny! And it was neat seeing some of the people from the workout videos in the Making Of, like Wesley and Dreya. The best thing was watching it all come together, from an idea, to a rough draft on paper, to pilot workout groups, to test groups, then to production of the program. It's neat to see behind the scenes, and I highly suggest checking out that Making Of video! Really cool. That's all from me!

Day 51 - Yooooga!

For the first time in 51 days, I held a pose in yoga that I never could before. I have no idea what it's called, but basically you're in a lunge, twisted, with one arm behind your back and the other reaching under your leg with your fingers intertwined. Sounds ridiculous, I know, and it is! It's soooo hard on the quads, by the end of it they're so hot it feels like they're on fire. But I love it.

There are still a lot of moves I can't do. Like the moves that follow warrior three, where they stand on one leg with the other leg extended in the air behind them for about 2 minutes per side. Huge balance and strength requirements for those poses, and I can't do it. But neither can Chris, so I don't feel so bad. ;)

Nothing to report diet-wise - just a standard day! Sorry to be boring! 

Day 50 - DAY 50!

I'm 55% done P90X!

I know I say this at every "milestone", but I really can't believe it's been that long. I'm going into my second rest week, starting today. Yoga was scheduled, but by the time I got home and we got ready, it was 8:30 and we didn't want to have to spend until 10:00 doing yoga. So we switched it with Intervals, the theory being there's probably a similar calorie burn between the two. Yoga is an hour and a half of relatively calm, isometric flexibility and strength exercises, whereas Intervals is 40 minutes of ballistic cardiovascular exercises. So, in theory, the calorie burn should be similar. If only I had a heart rate monitor, then I'd know for sure. Maybe someday!

Two days ago we did a yoga workout which I blogged about briefly, but was too into posting about breakfast to share my excitement... but I can't contain myself anymore... I HAVE A SIX PACK!!!

I was doing table and Chris walked in the room and was like, "Oh my god, where's your camera?!" So he snapped this picture of me, and there is literally a six pack there. Mind you, standing up and in different light it doesn't look that crazy, but in the bedroom light in table pose, I have friggen' six pack abs!!! And I'm obviously very excited about this!! SO proud! :)

!!!!!!

Day 49 - iPhone!!!

Chris gave me my Christmas present early today - an iPhone!

Needless to say I spent all evening playing with it and now I'm exhausted and ready for bed. Today was a rest day, so not much to post anyway!

Night ya'll.

Day 48 - A tasty breakfast adventure

I took pictures of my breakfast endeavors this morning, as promised. I cooked some chicken and shredded that, and chopped up red, green and yellow peppers, tomatoes and green onions:

I dumped all that in with some egg whites..

..then I threw half of it in a pan..

..and, ta-da! Christopher's breakfast!

His omelet didn't really turn out (because I can't cook omelets..), so I cooked mine more as a scramble. It turned out wonderfully..

And, because I prepared enough chicken and veggies to make four omelets, the remainder went into a salad..

..and we ate it for lunch with leftover pork chops from last night!

A photographic journey through my breakfast. Fun! I should do those more often.

Day 47 - Donut.. D'oh!

I woke up in a fury at 0615 this morning because I was supposed to be at the hospital to shadow an RN for 0630.. Needless to say, my alarm did not go off. I threw on some scrubs, called a cab, ran a brush through my hair, tossed a couple protein bars and two packs of oatmeal in my purse, and ran out the door. (Then I waited 20 minutes for my cab, but that's another story.)

I ate a protein bar while waiting for the cab, which, I guess, could count as breakfast.. but I still had no lunch. So during first break I went to the horribly overpriced cafeteria and got a turkey wrap, a yogurt, and - for the first time in 47 days - a donut. I was feeling so sooky and sour that I was so rushed this morning, I got the donut as a comfort food. I know, I know, "it's one donut, it's no big deal". It wouldn't be a big deal if this whole program didn't mean so much to me. But, I can forgive one donut. And in my defense, at the time, I purposely chose a glazed donut (honey dip) over the cake donut that I really wanted (sour cream glazed), because I know they're lower in fat.

So there.

I got back on track once I got home. We had pork chops and salad for supper, and I had a second protein bar at 1500 when I'm actually supposed to have one. Speaking of breakfast (well, I was), we don't have any chicken bacon, so I don't know what to do about breakfast. I can have oatmeal, I love oatmeal.. but that's two protein servings lost. I guess I could make egg whites.. Ooooh, I just thought of something: an egg-white omelet with chicken, peppers and salsa. YUM! See, this blog is good for something!

I'll be taking pictures of this breakfast. Can't wait!

Oh, and about the workouts: We did Legs & Back, skipping Ab Ripper again to do tomorrow morning. Chris is a maniac and has started doing intervals on weekend mornings, with his regular workouts in the evenings. I might join him tomorrow, but probably not. Let's be honest here. Anyway, for the chin-ups, Chris was reading that it's really effective to do negative chin-ups if you can't do a lot of regular ones. That'd be me. Negative chin-ups are half of a normal pull-up: the down part. You get your hands in place, stand up on a chair, then step off the chair and lower yourself down. And repeat. It really works, but I was a little disappointed because I had mega strain in my upper abs, to the point where I just stopped because they felt like they might get hurt. Chris says it's probably because it's working my body in a new way, and I hope he's right, because that means it'll go away with time. So I'll keep trying these negative chin-ups, and I'll keep ya'll posted!

Day 46 - No workouts here!

Hi everyone. Today was supposed to be Yoga day, but due to time constraints (read: my sisters' surprise birthday party), we couldn't fit it in. So we switched around some days. Today is now a rest day, followed by Legs & Back and Ab Ripper tomorrow, Yoga Sunday and Kenpo Monday.

Since I have nothing else to write about, I'll post a little story I found online a few weeks back, from The Telegraph.

Craz-E Burger: Americans embrace 1,500 calorie doughnut burger

Consisting of a bacon cheeseburger with a buttered, grilled and glazed doughnut standing in for a bun, the Craz-E Burger puts such fatty delights as the deep-fried Mars bar in the shade. Its 1,500 calories of sugar and saturated fat did not stop it from becoming a huge hit at a major fair in Massachusetts. Organisers of the Big E, which finished on Sunday, said visitors bought around 1,000 Craz-E burgers each day of the fair's 17-day run. The fair's website described it as "classic fair food" but noted: "No single ingredient dominates the burger. They all complement each other with artistry expected from a celebrity chef." It added: "The glaze smooths over the burger and oozes into a foreign but delicious combination with the crisp of the bacon." The burger was believed to have been created by a bar owner in Decatur, Georgia, who substituted a doughnuts when he ran out of buns. The restaurant also serves a hamdog, a hotdog wrapped in a beef patty and deep-fried. The Gateway Grizzlies, a minor league baseball team in Illinois, serves the Luther burger at games, piling on further coronary heartache by deep-frying the Krispy Kreme doughnut used as the bun.

Mmm mmm, smell those myocardial infarctions!

Day 45 - HALFWAY DONE!

I can't believe it - I'm halfway done P90X! I know how cliche it sounds, but it seems like yesterday that we started. Well, maybe not yesterday. Maybe more like last week. The diet has become effortless, I look forward to my workouts, and I feel incredibly accomplished at the end of every day. It calms me down when I'm cranky and it clears my head when I'm stressed. So many things have become easy, like sit-ups, push-ups, and balance and flexibility poses in Yoga. It's hard to believe that I used to struggle with some of these moves.

I'm so proud of myself.. A few years ago I never could have committed to such a huge fitness and diet program, and part of the reason I can is Christopher. He's motivating and supportive, even when he's not even trying to be, and he's extremely encouraging. I love having him as a workout partner. I never would have done this well without him.

And, of course, part of the reason is me. I am so determined to finish this program, and especially now that I've come this far, I'd be crazy to stop now. I'm feeling great, and the best part: people are starting to notice how toned my arms are! I'm so happy with my results, it's hard to believe I'm only halfway done. I can't wait to see what these next 45 days bring!

Me! Tonight! Just now!

Day 44 - A Plyo day

So I did end up doing Plyo tonight instead of Cardio! I'm happy about that because Plyo is definitely a harder workout, and I felt really great afterward. You know it's a good one when you're wiping off your face between every single exercise! I pass on the ones where 180-degree spinning is involved, because last time I tried those, I felt nauseous. Chris does them, so I do other random exercises so my heart rate doesn't go down. Seems to work pretty well for me.

We went to see A Christmas Carol in IMAX 3D today. It was really good!! Starting P90X, I thought going to the movies would be difficult because I'm a theatre popcorn addict. We would always get the full meal deal: huge popcorn, huge pop, bag of candy. I can't imagine how much fat and sugar would be in all that. Anyway, starting out I was scared because I thought I would cave and get some popcorn, but we've found ways around that. I pop a bag of low-fat popcorn at home and take two Ziploc baggies of it with me, with a protein bar and a bottle of water. It's perfect, it's just enough snack, and it's not super bad for me! Win win!

Tomorrow marks the HALFWAY POINT - very exciting! Chest, Shoulders & Triceps and Ab Ripper to celebrate! Hooray!!

Day 43 - Turkey day!

We went over to our friend's place for supper tonight, and she cooked an amazing turkey dinner for us. It was so tasty, and there wasn't even any stuffing or gravy to cheat with! We just had turkey, potatoes, squash and salad. No cheating here! I'm sooo sleepy from the turkey, but it was delicious, and we had a fantastic time. :)

I did Core today, and I think Tony should change the name to Shoulders. That workout works my shoulders so hard, it's unreal. The walking pushups, the plank to chatarunga iso, the plank to chatarunga run.. Shoulders, shoulders, shoulders! You'd think by now that I'd be able to tough it out.. Not the case. I can't finish any of those three without stopping for a little break. BUT! I did the whole steam engine exercise - with speed - for the first time, and I realized today that I've been doing the lunge and reach exercise wrong. I changed my footing today, rotating on the balls of my feet and lunging properly, and it gave me a totally different kind of workout. I really felt it working my back and abs! This is exciting because it means it'll be that much more effective.

And I still can't keep my balance very well in boat, but that's coming!

Tomorrow is Remembrance Day, so since we get a day off, we're going to see A Christmas Carol in IMAX 3D. Very excited! And tomorrow is supposed to be cardio, but if time permits, I'll likely change that to Plyo. But we'll have to wait and see!

Can't wait!!

Day 42 - Rest day

Today was rest day, and I actually rested, instead of subbing in another workout. So, not much to write about today.

Except Chris made that delicious Italian Meatloaf from the recipe in the nutrition guide... MMMM, it is SO friggen' good. I'm sure I've said this before, but I'm a total sucker for meatloaf. I don't know why. Pastries and meatloaf are my weaknesses. Obviously, Tony doesn't allow pastries.. So I was ecstatic when we found that recipe, in the P90X nutrition guide, no less!

That's all from me today. Tomorrow is Core Syn, so I'm sure I'll have lots to write about then! And just because, a photo of me and my kitty:

Snuggles!

Day 41 - Cheat Day 2 of 3

Today was a great day. First of all it was Sunday, which means no class, and second of all I had no homework, so it was a real day off! I started the day by eating oatmeal instead of my regular scrambled egg whites and chicken bacon, then I did laundry and Chris did the dishes. When we were finished being domestic we spent some time with his family, then came home and started Intervals. After that we got ready for Christopher's late birthday dinner, and walked there only to discover the restaurant was closed... So we changed restaurant plans and had a wonderful meal together. Starting P90X we allowed ourselves three cheat days: Thanksgiving, Chris's birthday and Christmas. So for cheat day 2 of 3, we went all out, with butternut squash tarts, spinach stuffed pork chops, haddock fillet with apple chutney, apple and cranberry crisp, and wine! Mmmm, it was perfect. I surprised Chris with a bonus birthday gift, and a visit to a comedy bar in town. He was very surprised, and we had a great time.

So, speaking of Intervals, they were brutal! In Intervals, you do 20 minutes of workouts, then for the last 20 minutes you do the same routine but backwards. I found that I was more tired for the first set than the second! I felt like I was dying the first time around, but the second time I literally got my second wind and I finished with a bang. Then we did Ab Ripper, which we were supposed to do yesterday. I did all 40 Mason Twists with my feet off the ground - very proud! After watching some videos of some people doing Mason Twists over 200 times, 40 doesn't seem so hard.. but it really really is, and I'm proud that I can do them all.

That's it for now - I had a busy day and I'm exhausted! How was your weekend? :)

Day 40 - Pomegranates and hip flexors

My flu is almost gone! Hooray!! All that remains is a deep, productive chest cough, which my nurse mother says will stick around for a while. But I can deal with a measley little cough, if it means the rest of my symptoms are gone!

Naturally, I celebrated this victory with some P90X. Chris and I did Legs & Back, and we started Ab Ripper, but we couldn't do it. Well, I'm sure Chris could have, but he gave in to my incessant whining, and we decided to do it tomorrow morning. The leg exercises are mostly lunge-based, which works your hip flexors in a major way. Then, to have to do Ab Ripper is near torture. A lot of the ab moves are in a seated, reclined position with the legs in the air, which translates into major hip flexor work. Mine were just too tired from the leg exercises, they wouldn't stop cramping, and my workout was suffering as a result. So we said "screw it, we'll do it tomorrow morning."

Also, Kenpo is scheduled for tomorrow, so we're going to swap it out for Intervals from P90X+. Intervals is a much better (read: waayyy harder) cardio workout, so I'm pretty stoked since I've been out of the loop for a few days. It feels great to be back.

And, I got three of four of my pomegranates prepped and portioned! Poms aren't in the nutrition guide, so I'm assuming they count as a fruit. One fruit serving is 100 calories, which is roughly 2/3 cup of pomegranate. I'm sure Tony won't mind.. Poms are incredibly good for you, they're full of antioxidants and fibre, and they're freakin' delicious - what's not to love?

  

Pom preparation, and the final result: perfect snack packs!

Day 39 - Yoga with a side of flu symptoms

I never thought I'd see the day that I actually loathed having a week off from everything. I would have killed for this mini-vacation as a kid! I left the house today for the first time since Wednesday (yes, that's only two days) and it felt so great. I am not one to stay indoors and feel sorry for myself, so the second I felt better, I was out the door. It also snowed here for the first time this fall, so we went on a little snow walk / grocery trip, and we rented a movie. It was cold and slushy and raining outside but I didn't care, because I was outside! Yesterday I checked the mail three times, just for the sake of leaving the apartment and walking down the stairs to the mailboxes. Literally going shack-whacky after two days.

I also ate better today. I am back on track with the diet plan, except I didn't have any fruit today. Counterintuitive really, when I'm ultimately trying to get over a virus. Anyway, I feel good about eating well today. I also did Yoga X, which makes me very proud. I was flip-flopping, trying to decide if I felt ready, and when it came time to do it, I figured that my fever and headache were gone, so why not? I did it all, minus the crazy Warrior Three poses.. which, honestly, I can't do well when I'm not sick. So I did the Yoga and I followed the diet guide. Life is good. :)

Tomorrow I have to prepare some pomegranate that I've been putting off preparing. I love pomegranate! I'll definitely have a serving of fruit if there's pomegranate around.

My poms :)

Day 38 - Feeling better, slowly but surely

Today was a good day. Instead of resting like the doctor ordered (literally), I wrote a paper, started a painting and scrubbed the bathroom from top to bottom. This is what I'm like now; full of energy that I have to get rid of in one form or another. It definitely wasn't going to be through P90X workouts.. I'm not feeling quite that good. My fever is gone, but my nose has turned into a running faucet and I'm sneezing like crazy. Plus headaches. I literally have a Kleenex burn mustache going on. Needless to say, I'm very attractive right about now.

I tried to eat a little more on-track with the diet, and I did better than yesterday. Cheerios for breakfast, a cup of coffee (I know better, but I love my coffee), two cups of orange juice, a yogurt, tomato soup, and a protein bar. For supper I made breakfast: egg whites, chicken bacon and two baby bagels. Chris went out for birthday dinner with his mom, so I had no one to impress. Also, I love having breakfast for supper. And now I'm drinking tea. Life is good.

Yoga is technically scheduled for tomorrow, and I would love to get back on track with the workouts. Yoga (at least the easy moves) seems like a good one to start back in with, but I'll have to play it by ear and see how I feel.

This is exactly what I've been doing for the last two days.

Except that's not me. I'm not that pretty laying sick in bed.

Day 37 - Still down and out

Missed posting again last night. I was drowsy and nauseated, and it wasn't a good scene. My doctor diagnosed me with influenza, which wasn't surprising. What was surprising was how shocked she was that I would come to her office. I even sanitized my hands and put on a mask when I got there, but she said I should have gone to one of the flu assessment clinics set up around the city. Well, I didn't know.. I figured when you were sick, you went to the doctor. Anyway, she gave me a script for Tamiflu and an order to take a week off school and work. Tamiflu is kind of neat, it blocks an enzyme in the body that the virus needs to live. It doesn't end the symptoms, but it decreases the severity and duration. I don't know if it's H1N1 or seasonal flu, but Chris just called to tell me the paper is reporting no confirmed cases of seasonal flu. They've all been H1N1 so far. So, it's likely swine flu.

My fever has gone down overnight, taking Tamiflu and acetaminophen. My appetite has returned a bit, too. All good signs. Still have the sore throat, coughing, sniffing, sneezing and fatigue.

Yesterday I ate a bagel, a bowl of cereal, a protein bar, a granola bar, a delicious chicken wrap that Chris made for me, and 5 glasses of orange juice. For some reason, when I'm sick, I just can't drink water. I have to drink something flavoured. I know it's loaded with sugar and all I ate were carbs but really, right now I'm just focusing on getting better. And, sadly, I don't foresee any P90X in my immediate future. I'll try to post tonight. No promises!

Day 36 - Virus-laden

I didn't post last night either. And I can't blame it on the internet.

But, I'm sick. When I posted yesterday morning all I had was a tickle in my throat, and last night it had progressed to full blown cough, headache and fever. I felt antsy, laying on the couch all night, so Chris suggested I attempt some X Stretch. It helped with my restlessness and it felt really good, but I won't be doing it again today. I'm too sick today. I have a doctor's appointment this afternoon so I'm hoping she'll know what I have, if it's a cold, flu or strep. I don't think it's a cold because of the nonproductive cough and the fever, but we'll see.

I've also switched my diet, and am more focused on eating things I can get down. So far today that's consisted of two glasses of orange juice and a bagel.

And, today is Christopher's birthday. Worst timing ever. :(

Day 35 - Internet FAIL 2.0

My internet was down again yesterday, hence the lack of posting last night. I called them and they're going to come fix it on Saturday. I'm posting from school right now, but hopefully it's back on for tonight's post.

Yesterday was supposed to be rest/stretch day, but I did NOT feel like sitting around. (Plus, a friend of mine gave me a Lululemon workout top, which motivated me as soon as I put it on!) I did Plyometrics, and it felt great. I skip a few parts, based on last time I did it. I skip the twisting exercises where I'm supposed to spin 180 degrees, back and forth, because it makes me crazy dizzy. And I skip the "bonus" sports exercises, except for the jumpshot since it really gets my heart going. All in all it was a great workout!

Our slow-cooker chicken turned out really well, and we had it with stir-fried vegetables with it. It was very tasty! No idea what's for supper tonight. But it's Core Synergistics for my workout, and I can't wait! I'm in the middle of a crazy period at school so I loving having P90X as an outlet. It decreases my stress level, clears my mind and calms me down. I love it!

Day 34 - Making up for lost time

Today is Sunday, which means I wasn't in school. It's also Daylight Savings today, which means we gained an hour in the day. I woke up at 7:30, kind of by accident thinking it was 8:30, but stayed up and did two loads of laundry, dishes and the Intervals workout before noon (more on that later). Then I went to the mall with Chris, had a chicken hummus wrap for lunch, got groceries, came home, had slow-cooker pork chops, then did Kenpo X followed by Ab Ripper. I'd call that a productive day!

Today I kind of made my own workout schedule. As I was saying yesterday, Chris got P90X+. He did the Intervals workout yesterday and loved them, so we did them together this morning. I loved it! Well, I loved it when it was over and I felt awesome.. Getting through the actual workout was pretty brutal. It's based on interval training, and you do 10 seconds of low-intensity, then 10 seconds of medium-intensity, and finally, 10 seconds of high-intensity. This kind of pattern carries on through the whole workout for every exercise. The first 10 seconds of every exercise were my saving grace from the exercise prior. Intervals is definitely a fantastic cardio workout and I'll be doing it again soon!

We were actually scheduled for Kenpo tonight, and I was thinking about switching that up, but we decided to stick with it. We skipped through the blocks, but we did everything else. And when that was over, I stuck the Ab Ripper disc in and did the entirety of that. So, in total, I guess I did about 2 hours of exercise today! I felt like I had to make up for the last two days, since I was feeling so rotten about missing my workouts. I felt incredible after Intervals, and tired but accomplished after Kenpo and Ab Ripper.

I got my flu shots two days ago (and you should, too!) and the H1N1 vaccine made my arm really tender, like someone punched me in the arm. Because of this, all of my left-handed punches in Kenpo were a little sloppy.   I'm surprised at how much it aches. I still can't sleep on it. But it was worth it!

Chris had slow-cooker pork chops cooking all day, and they turned out to be delicious. He says it was more of an experiment than anything, throwing potatoes, garlic, diced tomatoes, ketchup, barbecue sauce, Worcestershire sauce and chicken broth in with the pork chops. I'm telling you, slow-cooked is the best way to eat pork chops. They were so tender we didn't even use knives to eat them; they fell right apart. Right after supper we prepped a small chicken by stuffing it with limes and onions (there wasn't much to choose from for stuffing ingredients), soaking him with white wine and chicken broth, and seasoning him with garlic powder, dehydrated onion and oregano. He'll spend all day being cooked and will provide a delicious supper for us tomorrow. We are absolutely obsessed with our slow cooker, can you tell?

I'm heading to bed. Here is a quick photo of me from the Ab Ripper workout - check out them abs! :)

They're coming along nicely!

Day 33 - Happy Halloween!

Today wasn't good as far as workouts go. I feel so guilty. Since I didn't get to do my yoga yesterday, I thought I would really bring it tonight. Well, I got halfway through my Legs and Back workout, but I just was not in the mood. In previous times I pushed through the bad mood and it's always turned into a good mood.. Tonight was different, and it's hard to describe.

So, tomorrow we're scheduled for Kenpo. Chris recently got P90X+, and he did the Intervals workout today and he loved it. So, since I missed nearly two days, I'm going to do Intervals tomorrow, and instead of Kenpo (since I don't find it works super well) we're going to do another higher intensity workout. I haven't seen any of the workouts yet, so we'll choose tomorrow.

I spent last night with my cousins and sisters, having our yearly catch-up night. We picked up some fruit and veggie trays, and I took a six-pack of Heineken because it's surprisingly low in calories. I had four and went to bed at midnight, while everyone else stayed up until 6:00 am and shared a quart of rum. Glad I missed out on that one! I was absolutely exhausted and I was falling asleep in the hot tub. But I still had a really great time. I love spending time with my family.

Tonight we had a low-key Halloween, handing out candy with Chris's family. I didn't have any, and it wasn't hard to resist it. I'm finding it easier to resist chocolate and candy, whereas before, I'd be drooling and imagining how tasty it would be (but I still wouldn't eat it!). On the P90X Facebook group, there is a discussion about how people resist Halloween candy, or if they give up and eat some. Most people said they'd have one or two, which I think is fine, but some people said they ate whatever they wanted, had no control, went on a binge, etc, etc. This led me to the conclusion that I'm taking this program far more seriously than most people. I get upset with myself when I miss workouts when most would shrug and say "oh well", and I always pass on junk food when most would say "I'll work it off later".

Speaking of which, I have a subscription to Women's Health and this month had a great fact: it takes 35 minutes of brisk walking to burn off a sugary donut. Doesn't seem worth it to me!

Sugar city!

Day 32 - More time constraints

I'm posting early since I won't be home to post tonight. I'm unable to do my Yoga workout (again!), which I hate, but I spent the last hour and a half waiting for an influenza vaccine, so it was time well spent. In less than an hour I'm going out for the night, so I'm aiming to have my Yoga done tomorrow! Plus the other two workouts. We'll see how that goes.. I might just have to miss it. Sigghhh..

Day 31 - Chest, Shoulders and Triceps

Today was my first Chest, Shoulders and Triceps workout. I love the triceps workouts.. I hate the push ups. Why oh why are there so many push ups?! Clearly my shoulders and arms are too weak if I'm still finding push ups hard. So, despite hating push ups, I'm happy that they're included because it only means that I'll get better at them! I really like the triceps kickback workouts. I'm impressed with Tony's creativity - he takes one move and turns it into four or five moves, which keeps in interesting. This is key! There's nothing worse than pushing yourself through a workout that you hate doing. Breaking up a brutal triceps workout into five shorter, different workouts was brilliant.

We had chicken breasts and boiled squash for supper tonight, and if you know me, you know I LOVE squash. Chris cooked it, god love him, and it was very tasty. We're always on the lookout for meal ideas, so if you have any, post a comment for me! I'd love to hear some suggestions.

Otherwise, that's it for me - I have an early early morning tomorrow. Story of my life!

Day 30 - 1/3 complete!

Day 30! DAY 30! I'm so excited that I reached this milestone knowing that I gave 100% in my workouts and my diet. I celebrated by switching Cardio X for Plyometrics - talk about a celebration! I was jumping around and throwing my hands in the air like you wouldn't believe. This was my first time doing Plyo, thanks to a suggestion from Chris. I like the Cardio workout, but it's so short! I feel like I'm just getting going, and then it's over. Plyo is the full hour, which I love, and there is NO rest time between moves. I finish up a set, I'm sweating like hell, I'm breathing heavy and I'm tremendously thirsty, but no! No break! On to the next move! Though Tony's gracious enough to give us 30 seconds between every 8 moves. Enough time to wipe the sweat out of my eyes and have a sip of water, then back at it! I'm telling you, it's brutal at the time. I sound like a primitive animal, grunting, panting and whining. But as soon as he says we're done, this incredible feeling of achievement washed over me and I feel like I could do it all over again! (I never would, but you get the point.)

I'm still adjusting to the diet change. One less protein, one more carb. I had a 6-inch sub from Subway today (280 calories, 1/2 serving of protein, 1 serving of carb, 1/4 serving of fat), and it was really delicious. The back of the Nutrition Guide gives you some guidelines for fast food joints, in case time isn't on your side. There are 12 items from Subway listed, 3 items from McDonald's, 2 form Burger King, 3 from Pizza Hut, 5 from Wendy's, etc. There are also guidelines for buying microwave dinners, which - thankfully - we haven't had to resort to yet. We went out and bought these cute little mini bagels, as well as some real bagels and English muffins (which, ironically, rang up as "Muffins Anglais" on the receipt...). Our cart held more bread than I had seen in the last month.

Can you tell I'm excited about the carb increase? I know, I know, "is she seriously still talking about the damn carb?" Okay. I'll move on.

I have a new appreciation for Lululemon. I have a duffel bag of theirs from a while back, and a couple headbands, but I never got any clothing because of the price. A few weeks ago, I bought my first Lulu sportsbra (love!!). A couple weeks later, I bought a pair of shorts. Then the other day, I bought another pair of shorts. Because they're INCREDIBLE! Seriously! Those shorts are tight enough that they don't budge, but they don't ride up or chafe or anything, even during the most intense workouts. So, I'm officially a Lulu addict. This is not a good thing for the bank account. There will definitely be some Lulu items on my Christmas list..!

 

Love the fit of these ones             These are my favourite

                                              (and they were on sale!)